Honestly...at that point...we were so glad to have our luggage back and were so frazzled and desperate to get to SXM...the broken luggage was not a huge issue. So no we did not file a claim.

in hind site....there are many things we SHOULD have done that we did not do. We were focused on the hours of our precious vacation ticking away without being in SXM.

The bottom line is...we will never go on a trip without checking the passports. It was a very costly mistake....financially and emotionally. But it also made us appreciate every moment of our trip that we had left.

SXM ...club orient...is a vacation that is hard to explain to those who have never been there. It is certainly not the most beautiful Caribbean island....but it speaks to us like no other and we count the days until we can return.

Steve is retiring in August....so for the first time since 1997...we have no vacations planned....and i will admit...it is a little frightening to me.